Vice President Kashim Shettima inaugurated the N1 billion Abdul Samad Rabiu Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the University of Maiduguri, Borno State, during the institution’s 24th combined convocation. This initiative, constructed and donated by the Abdul Samad Rabiu Africa Initiative, aims to foster innovation and entrepreneurial development among students and researchers.
VP Shettima, representing President Bola Tinubu, lauded the initiative and highlighted its alignment with the government’s Renewed Hope Agenda, urging other affluent individuals and corporations to contribute more to such causes.
Abdul Samad Rabiu, Chairman of BUA Group, described the gesture as part of the conglomerate’s corporate social responsibility and ASR Africa Initiative’s commitment to driving economic growth in Nigeria.
Addressing the significance of the centre, Prof. Aliyu Shugaba, the Vice-Chancellor of the University, emphasized its dual role in providing a conducive environment for entrepreneurial training and facilitating a transformative shift in entrepreneurial learning. He expressed a desire for the centre to bridge the gap between training and practical enterprise creation, a challenge faced despite previous entrepreneurship training for over 70,000 students.
Shugaba envisioned the Abdul Samad Centre as a catalyst for an enriched entrepreneurial ecosystem, encouraging creativity, collaboration, and experimentation. The centre aims to nurture new ventures, fostering both social and economic impacts and ultimately empowering future graduates to create self-employment opportunities.
The unveiling of the Abdul Samad Rabiu Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the University of Maiduguri marks a significant step toward fostering innovation and cultivating entrepreneurship among students, offering a promising platform for driving economic growth and self-employment opportunities in the region.
